Wireless communications systems are widely deployed to provide various types of communication content such as voice, video, packet data, messaging, broadcast, and so on. These systems may be accessed by various types of access terminals adapted to facilitate wireless communications, where multiple access terminals share the available system resources (e.g., time, frequency, and power). Examples of such wireless communications systems include code-division multiple access (CDMA) systems, time-division multiple access (TDMA) systems, frequency-division multiple access (FDMA) systems and orthogonal frequency-division multiple access (OFDMA) systems.
Access terminals adapted to access one or more wireless communications systems are becoming increasingly popular, with consumers often using power-intensive applications that run on increasingly complicated and power consuming access terminals. Access terminals are typically battery-powered and the amount of power a battery can provide between charges is generally limited. Features which may assist in extending the operating life of the access terminal between recharging are therefore beneficial.